Personnel Index - Detail
Image via Ashley Hales
The newspaper article continues...........
Oxygen Failed
"In an operational flight last December he became unconcious when the oxygen failed, was sent to a new squadron after treatment, and made only three sorties when he was reported missing," so said Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Bennett, Denforth Ave, whose son, F/Sgt Jack Norman E. Bennett, 30, is missing on 'ops' over Frankfurt.
"While in England, he met his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Nash Downes, aged 85 and 83, residents of London, who have come through all the London blitzes," his mother said.
F/Sgt Bennett enlisted on his birthday July 20, 1942 and trained at Lachine, Mountainview and Mont Joli where he got his wings as rear gunner.
He went overseas last May. As an only child he was born in Calgary and came to Toronto in 1917.
A member of Troop 35 of the Boy Scouts of St. John's Anglican Church, Norway, he had the distinction of being a King's scout.
SEASIDE SORTIE (November 1943):
F/O Don Turner (JB229) and crew were returning over the North Sea on track, with 1,000ft showing on the altimeter. The conditions were misty, so the pilot decided to let down a little in order to determine landfall. Just as he did the Lancaster suddenly struck the sea and then moments later it was careering up a beach towards sand dunes. A startled but intact crew clambered out into waist high freezing sea water! S-Sugar had in fact come ashore at Chapel-St-Leonards on the Lincolnshire coast 5 miles north of Skegness. The freezing cold crew found much to their displeasure, that the Lincolnshire seaside, whilst perhaps popular with pre-war summertime holiday makers, was not so alluring in the middle of November 1943. The crew spent the next few days recovering in Scampton sick bay.
Pilot........F/O D G Turner
F/E..........Sgt J Finlayson
Nav........ Sgt J N Hughes
B/A.........F/O W Pearce
WOp......Sgt L Nightingale
MUG......Sgt T D Horne
RG.........Sgt J N E Bennett
Further details of the incident are recored in May Hill's WW2 diary (opens in a new window).
22/23 March, 1944; FRANKFURT:
Frankfurt again, and 49 Squadron managed to get 19 airborne.
The accurate PFF marking and bombing by over 800 aircraft ensured that Frankfurt suffered yet another heavy blow. Diversions had confused the Germans, who at first forecast Hannover as the target, but a few night-fighters did manage to find the bomber stream and 26 Lancasters and 7 Halifaxes failed to return.
Again Fiskerton had suffered losses when two crews were posted missing; F/O Donald Turner (survivor of Chapel-St-Leonards beach crash Nov 43) and crew (except Sgt Velasco A/G who became a PoW) were sadly all killed.
Lancaster ND672 (EA-U)
F/O D.G. Turner Pilot (Killed)
Sgt E. Lee F/E (Killed)
F/S S.J. Upton NAV (Killed)
Sgt L.H. Nightingale W/AG (Killed)
Sgt P. Velasco A/G (P.o.W.)
F/O W. Pearce A/B (Killed)
F/S J.N.E. Bennett RCAF A/G (Killed)
Crew on their 4th operation